Senator Bernie Moreno of Ohio blasted Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell during an exchange on CNBC's Squawk Box on Thursday, after co-anchor Andrew Sorkin repeatedly pressed Moreno to weigh in on an ongoing investigation into Powell's alleged misleading congressional testimony over renovation-related expenses.
"Well, my position, Andrew, is pretty straightforward. As a United States senator, I should not weigh in on criminal investigations one way or the other," Sen. Moreno insisted. "What I will say, like I said, clear to me, he's guilty of being incompetent. In terms of whether that was a crime, that's not up to the Senate to decide one way or the other. And by the way, that has nothing to do with whether Kevin Walsh is qualified. He should be immediately confirmed."
"I agree with that," Sorkin replied. "Do you believe that the president of the United States should weigh in on criminal investigations? This goes to the question about the independence of the Department of Justice, actually."
"Well, look, the president has opinions. Every president has opinions. Politicians have multiple opinions, even at the same time, in many cases," Moreno quipped.
"Right, but you just said that you don't have an opinion. You just said that as a senator, you shouldn't have an opinion," Sorkin pressed. "I'm just asking a question. You just said on the air that two seconds ago, you shouldn't have an opinion. And then I said to you, well, the president. And you said, well, the president has opinions. So, do you have an opinion on what's going on here? And if you said it's inappropriate for you to have an opinion, explain the difference between that and somebody else."
"Am I able to answer your question now?" Sen. Moreno asked. "So what you asked me was whether I thought something should happen, meaning that I should direct an outcome. Of course, I have an opinion. Look, he was asked a question about the renovations at the Fed, which are completely ridiculous, whether he intended to lie or did not intend to lie. The truth is, he did give us false information. Intent is something that happens in a criminal investigation."
Moreno went on to accuse Sorkin of attempting to corner him into weighing in on Powell's guilt or innocence, so that Sorkin could then argue the independence of the Department of Justice was being undermined by the investigation. He added that, regardless of personal opinions, Jerome "Too Late" Powell is the worst Federal Reserve chairman of his lifetime, and that the Senate should move swiftly to confirm Kevin Walsh:
You know that better than I do. I'm a business guy. You should know that as a lawyer. That's not the question. We have opinions. The question isn't whether I have an opinion or not, is whether I should direct the Department of Justice to go one way or another in a criminal investigation. That's what's at heart. Look, at the end of the day, Jerome Powell is the worst Fed chairman of my lifetime. Kevin Walsh would do an amazing job. Let's get the guy confirmed. That's the bottom line.
Senator @berniemoreno DESTROYS liberal hack Andrew Sorkin on failed Fed Chair Too Late Powell. pic.twitter.com/mNIaMrjGMR
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